Year Two students on the BA (Hons) Fashion Design course at Nottingham Trent University (NTU) have been working on an exciting Menswear Project for ASOS Menswear.

The INBETWEEN LAND team with Nick and James of ASOS

Year Two students on the BA (Hons) Fashion Design course at Nottingham Trent University (NTU) have been working on an exciting menswear project for ASOS Menswear.

The year group, split into 16 teams, were tasked with designing an Own Buy range for AW17, and to identify an Autumn Winter trend to inspire a 28-piece collection.

Fashion giants ASOS are renowned for designing menswear with a distinctive design and quality, looking to appeal to young twenty-something fashion lovers globally. The students have been expected to take the ASOS brand position and customer focus on board when working towards their collections, considering everything from key shapes and fabrications, to marketing strategies and new ways of engaging the customer.

Heads of Menswear Design at ASOS, Nick Eley and James Lawrence, were involved in the live project from its launch in November 2016. Following the initial presentations of ideas before Christmas in 2016, Nick and James returned to NTU to view the final collection presentations in February 2017. An evening catwalk presentation showcased 65 outfits from 16 groups, with students taking inspiration from ideas as diverse as the Sami reindeer herders of Sweden to Francis Bacon paintings and Star Wars.

Following the catwalk finale , Nick said: “You guys really know how to put on a show! The work we’ve seen is more than Year Two standard. The future of British Fashion is in very good hands.”

First place went to INBETWEEN LAND, a fantasy-inspired collection referencing 1970s skateboarding culture and Danny Boyle’s cult film Trainspotting.

Upon announcing the winning collection, James said: “It’s been a really difficult decision. But this is an exceptional collection; it included everything that feels new and exciting in menswear right now. Outstanding work and attention to detail.”

ENKLA were placed second for their “beautifully executed” Scandinavian collection, which looked to the Icelandic hills for pattern inspiration. And in third place, for their “brave approach to the brief”, was URBAN REBEL, a youthful genderwear collection inspired by Star Wars.

Amelia Hessian, Jun Zhu, Phoebe Walker, Rhian Langford, Georgia Clements and Jimin Oh were the members of the team behind INBETWEEN LAND. Their prize will see them spending a day at the ASOS Head Offices with the design team, where they will be given a portfolio masterclass, alongside industry tips.

Student Amelia Hessian said: "Winning the ASOS competition felt amazing! So much hard work went into this menswear project. I've never worked so hard in my life, but it all paid off in the end.”

“Our group really embraced the project, and although it was tough we really enjoyed it. We have learned so much, and getting to go to ASOS HQ and have a portfolio masterclass is so thrilling, it's a great opportunity. I can’t wait to see what doors it will open in the future."

NTU are the only UK university ASOS are currently working with on live projects. Both designers emphasised the importance of building relationships with universities for future recruitment and talent spotting. See images of the collections by following @ntufashion18 on Instagram.